List of current members of the Maryland Senate


The Maryland Senate is the upper house of the Maryland General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. State of Maryland. One Senator is elected from each of the state's 47 electoral districts. As of January 2019, 32 of those seats are held by Democrats and 15 by Republicans. The leader of the Senate is known as the President, a position currently held by Bill Ferguson, who represents Baltimore City. In addition, Senators elect a President Pro Tempore, and the respective party caucuses elect a majority and minority leader and a majority and minority whip.
Senators are elected in even-numbered years when the President of the United States is not being elected, similar to most other state offices in Maryland. The most recent election was in November 2018. Senators are not term-limited. Should a Senator resign from office before his or her term expires, the local central committee of the party to which the retiring senator belonged makes a recommendation to the Governor for whom to appoint to the open seat. It is tradition for the Governor to appoint the recommended person. Nine of the current members of the Maryland State Senate were originally appointed, all of whom have since been elected in their own right. Newly elected Senators are sworn in and begin work on the second Wednesday of the January following their election.
Each Senator has at least one standing committee assignment. The first is to one of the four legislative committees: Budget and Taxation; Education, Health, and Environmental Affairs ; Finance; or Judicial Proceedings. A number of Senators have secondary committee assignments, most prominently to the Executive Nominations Committee, which oversees the constitutional responsibility of the Senate to approve nominations by the Governor. Assignment to the Rules or Executive Nominations committees or to any Ad Hoc committees is not noted.

Current party composition

Composition as of the beginning of the 2019–2022 term on January 9, 2019:
During the 2015–2018 term, the State Senate was made up of 33 Democrats and 14 Republicans. Republicans gained two seats, while losing one seat in the elections held on November 6, 2018. Democrats maintain a super-majority in the chamber. Article II, Section 17 of the Maryland Constitution specifies it takes a three-fifths vote of both chambers to override a veto, which is 29 votes in the State Senate. The rules of the Senate also permit members to limit debate by a three-fifths majority vote, meaning Republicans would need to gain four additional seats, for a total of 19, in order to sustain a veto or filibuster legislation.

Current leadership

The below table reflects the current leadership of the Maryland State Senate as of February 2, 2020.
PositionNamePartyDistrict
President of the SenateDemocratic46
President pro temDemocratic25
Majority LeaderDemocratic39
Majority WhipSusan C. LeeDemocratic16
Minority LeaderRepublican7
Minority WhipRepublican36

Current State Senators

Members of the Maryland State Senate as of the start of the 439th session of the Maryland General Assembly on Wednesday, January 9, 2019.
District
Jurisdiction represented
Image
Senator
Party
First
elected
Primary committee
1Allegany, Garrett, and WashingtonRepublican2006Budget and Taxation
2WashingtonRepublicanAppointed and sworn in on February 2, 2015Budget and Taxation
3FrederickDemocratic2010Judicial Proceedings
4Carroll and FrederickRepublican2014Judicial Proceedings
5CarrollRepublicanAppointed and sworn in on February 2, 2015Judicial Proceedings
6Baltimore CountyRepublican2014Budget and Taxation
7Baltimore County and HarfordRepublican2010Finance
8Baltimore CountyDemocratic2002Finance
9Carroll and HowardDemocratic2018Education, Health and Environmental Affairs
10Baltimore CountyDemocratic1994Finance
11Baltimore CountyDemocraticAppointed January 30, 2020 and sworn in February 3, 2020Judicial Proceedings
12Baltimore County and HowardDemocratic2018Education, Health and Environmental Affairs
13HowardDemocratic2014Budget and Taxation
14MontgomeryDemocraticAppointed February 3, 2016 and sworn in February 4, 2016Budget and Taxation
15MontgomeryDemocraticAppointed September 12, 2013 and sworn in September 17, 2013; first elected 2014Finance
16MontgomeryDemocratic2014Judicial Proceedings
17MontgomeryDemocratic2014Education, Health and Environmental Affairs
18MontgomeryDemocratic2018Judicial Proceedings
19MontgomeryDemocratic2018Finance
20MontgomeryDemocraticAppointed December 13, 2016 and sworn in December 21, 2016Judicial Proceedings
21Anne Arundel and Prince George'sDemocratic2006Budget and Taxation
22Prince George'sDemocraticAppointed August 1, 1994 and sworn in August 2, 1994; first elected November 1994Education, Health and Environmental Affairs
23Prince George'sDemocratic2006Budget and Taxation
24Prince George'sDemocratic2010Finance
25Prince George'sDemocratic2018Budget and Taxation
26Prince George'sDemocratic2018Education, Health and Environmental Affairs
27Calvert, Charles and Prince George'sDemocratic1974Budget and Taxation
28CharlesDemocratic2018Education, Health and Environmental Affairs
29Calvert, and St. Mary'sRepublican2018Education, Health and Environmental Affairs
30Anne ArundelDemocratic2018Budget and Taxation
31Anne ArundelRepublican2006Education, Health and Environmental Affairs
32Anne ArundelDemocratic2018Finance
33Anne ArundelRepublicanAppointed June 22, 2009; first elected 2010Finance
34HarfordRepublican2014Judicial Proceedings
35Cecil and HarfordRepublican2018Education, Health and Environmental Affairs
36Caroline, Cecil, Kent, and Queen Anne'sRepublicanAppointed September 18, 2013 and sworn in October 1, 2013; first elected 2014Finance
37Caroline, Dorchester, Talbot, and WicomicoRepublican2014Budget and Taxation
38Somerset, Wicomico, and WorcesterRepublican2018Education, Health and Environmental Affairs
39MontgomeryDemocraticAppointed and sworn in September 5, 2007; first elected 2010Budget and Taxation
40Baltimore CityDemocratic2018Finance
41Baltimore CityDemocraticAppointed and sworn in April 30, 2018Judicial Proceedings
42Baltimore CountyRepublican2018Judicial Proceedings
43Baltimore CityDemocratic2018Education, Health and Environmental Affairs
44Baltimore City and Baltimore CountyDemocratic2019Judicial Proceedings
45Baltimore CityDemocratic2018Budget and Taxation
46Baltimore CityDemocratic2010President of the Senate
47Prince George'sDemocratic2018Finance